| |
Wildflowers
for Irish Roadsides:
N9
Carlow / Kildare Moone By Pass, Bolton Hill
Realignment:
Locally
Sourced Wild Irish Native Origin Seed supplied by Design By Nature.
Red Clover Species both Native and E.U. Certified.
|
The N9 was sown By Tom Hussey and Associates and a fine job too. Tom is the first landscaper in Ireland to manage the roadside 'cuttings' flora during the critical establishment
phase. The wild flowers
sown in 2000 have all grow well. A 99% germination rate and they are wonderful.
The test now is can they stand up to 'no cutting' in following years.
|
|
|
|
Sadly the best of the flowers had to be used off the road, unseen, on 'embankments' facing the old road and these were intended not to be cut and to attract wildlife, as part of a Biodiverse corridor.
However the mixture MM11 is robust enough to survive no cutting, but there are
very rampant weeds, which germinated in the soil. I expect animals will
graze this section in the comming years.
|
|
|
In 2002 Birdsfoot
Trefoil and Kidney Vetch grew against the crash barrier. This
mixture is MM10 short supplied with species to withstand regular cutting
and very dry soils.
These
species added another safety aspect in the bright yellow colour. Sadly
they won't flower all year! In 2003, I noticed they are present but not
as dominant as shown in the 2002 photograph, which is a good, as the
flora looks more natural.
|
|
|
|
|
The grass margins, I hope will be cut so that the
wildflower species will continue to
grow for years as the soil is perfect for them, rocky, limy and dry.
If left uncut in the early years, grasses will invade these young perennials.
On the day I visited there was a few Butterflies on the Flora, but
summer 2002 was not a good butterfly year.
|
|
|
| This photo shows the section that was cut by Tom Hussey. Our wildflower mix was designed by nature from species found locally. These
species should withstand a no cutting regime once established, as many are tall
and will survive in the tall grasses.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Drifts were planted between the trees on the cuts 'embankments'.
If
the flowers all look the same, they are, but it is only year two, these
are the early flowering perennials, give them another few years.
Species such as Field Scabious, Hypericum, Marjoram, and Lesser
Knapweed should persist. In some areas in 2003, There
were drifts of flora throughout the new bypass and Field
Scabious, Marjoram, Ox eye, White and Bladder Campion had
germinated.
|
|
|
Conservation Note:
(After the first stage of construction)
The Carlow side (south) of the N9 Bolton Hill realignment was once sown about 4 years ago with imported wildflowers which
didn't last very long. These are now covered in top soil from the Moone
Bypass and
that's about what they deserve.
|
|
|
|
|
Visit the M9 sown by us Illegally
in 1997-9
|
|
|
| |
DBN
(Ire) - Irish Native Origin Wildflower Growers- Working on the
Wildside
|
|
|
|
